Forming in 2018, KARLOFF hail from Germany, helmed by erstwhile Graveyard Ghoul member Tom Horrified alongside a couple close comrades. But compared to that band’s old-school death metal stylings, KARLOFF go in a more punk-oriented direction – more street than cavern, as it were – with a sound self-described as “raw obscure punk turns into blackness.”

KARLOFF did exactly that with their debut Demo ’18, three thirsty ‘n’ miserable tracks of street-walking napalm. But things got more twisted ‘n’ pissed with the following Raw Nights a year later. Like a more gutter-level Midnight, here did KARLOFF kick out the (creepy) jams, strutting with sleazy confidence and an infectious sense of bash/crash/slash that struck deep into the heart of what makes the best of both punk and metal. Of course, that blackened singe is never far away, and gives KARLOFF’s canon that ever-special twist of ancient evil.

Fans from the very beginning, now does DYING VICTIMS combine both recordings onto one longer-playing format, under the title Raw Nights. Raw is this night in-fucking-deed, and you get eight quick-hitting tracks in a tantalizing 20 minutes, graced with new cover art courtesy of Tom Horrified and Jan Utecht of Occvlta. Go hard, go fast, go free: KARLOFF compel you to partake generously in Raw Nights!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present the highly anticipated second album of Germany’s WARLUST, Unearthing Shattered Philosophies, on CD, vinyl LP and digital formats.

One of the metal underground’s best-kept secrets, WARLUST began their assault on the false in 2012. The title of their debut demo, 2014’s Unholy Attack, said everything it needed to: here was blackthrashing METAL, steeped in the spirits of old and with genuinely evil blood coursing through its veins. However, it was 2017’s Morbid Execution debut album where WARLUST first truly took flight – on burning wings of flame! More intense, more epic, more heavy fucking metal, Morbid Execution carried on the noble work started by founding fathers Desaster in their homeland and Deströyer 666, Zemial, and Aura Noir abroad.

But, while that debut LP was still tethered to more traditional-style blackthrash, with Unearthing Shattered Philosophies do WARLUST’s songwriting chops blossom with startling strength and crushing clarity. It’s all immediately WARLUST, for sure, but within the album’s eight-song/45-minute runtime lurks a travelogue of terror and triumph, of melancholy and malevolence. Calling it more “epic” would be accurate, but that only tells half the story, if at all; allowing oneself to be swept away by both teeth-gnashing thrash sprints and strident, swords-aloft marches is more representative of the experience, of total possession, in thrall to the eternal and unyielding spirit of Hell’s heavy metal. Likewise, WARLUST’s command of dynamics here is impressive, to say the very least: part and parcel of those more epic stylings, the narrative flow within each track and then from one track to the next takes the band into the upper echelon of nowadays evil metal. And the band’s melodicism is, as ever, simultaneously cryogenic and burning hot to the touch in the grand tradition of classic Dissection and Necrophobic.

Better yet, gaze deeply into the moody art work Unearthing Shattered Philosophies and see where WARLUST lead you!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present the striking debut album of Canada’s SANDSTORM, Time to Strike, on 12” vinyl and CD formats.

Hailing from Vancouver, SANDSTORM are a power-trio in the grand tradition: PJ “The Butcher” La Griffe on drums, Reptile Anderson on lead vocals & bass guitar, and Stevie “Broke” Whiteless on lead vocals & guitar. The band formed during the winter 2017 and were initially inspired by ‘80s Swedish underground metal, the original NWOBHM movement, and “Rob Halford’s Instagram account.” While knowing (and fully embracing) all of heavy metal’s over-the-top aesthetics at the dawn of the 1980s, it became immediately apparent that SANDSTORM were indeed the Real fucking Deal when faced with their debut album, Time to Strike.

In early 2019, SANDSTORM digitally released Time to Strike and did a self-released run of 100 CDs and tapes, all of which sold out quickly, and for good reason: here was glorious (and gloriously scrappy) pre-speed/thrash HEAVY METAL in the literally ancient, sword-wielding style so favored in the early ‘80s, rendered in such authentic (and authentically over-the-top) style, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this was some unearthed relic from the era. Nothing’s overdriven here, and everything moves at a patient yet hot-rocking pace; all strings suitably retain a strong sense of rock ‘n’ roll, pared back in distortion to allow the medieval melodicism to work its magick. And, like all the best early true metal, the vocals are clear and authoritative and just high-pitched enough to evoke that misty ‘n’ mystical sensation. And although Time to Strike comprises but six songs, each one’s a mini-epic in its own right, making the album a compact but somehow expansive 35 minutes.

Many references could be made to Time to Strike, but no specific one in particular – that’s just how infectious and charismatic SANDSTORM are. And this is only the beginning, with more new material due later this year on DYING VICTIMS. Additionally, SANDSTORM will play Sweden’s esteemed Muskelrock fest this year, which perfectly suits the band’s obscure ‘n’ old-school take on heavy metal. Fuck yeah, it’s Time to Strike!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present ZATYR’s striking debut EP, Ornament of Proposition, on 12” vinyl and digital formats.
Hailing from Sweden and forming in 2019, ZATYR quickly set to work on their debut EP – plus, speaking of "set," their vocalist Set used to be in the beloved Devil Lee Rot. Titled Ornament of Proposition, the band’s first public recording was released digitally in September of that year, and proudly displayed an otherwise-new band brimming with the fire of the ancients and confidence to spare. Indeed, ZATYR here sounded authentically old, casting their gaze across the darkest and classiest currents of classic heavy metal singed with a touch of first-wave black metal. But, paradoxically, the quartet just as ably burned with the enthusiasm of feral youngbloods, imbuing the EP’s three tracks with boundless passion.
Seeing fit to foster the rich lifeblood of the heavy metal underground, DYING VICTIMS grants ZATYR’s debut EP on a new lease on life, rendering it onto black gold and including an exclusive bonus track, now encompassing a total of 18 stout minutes. Truly, this re-release shall rightfully expose ZATYR to the wider metal landscape, boldly emblazoning “The Devil’s Rock ‘n’ Roll” across the hearts and minds of those who hail ancient heavy metal and black metal alike. Names to be referenced include early Running Wild, Mercyful Fate, Omen, Brocas Helm, Death SS and even Bathory’s transition from Blood Fire Death to Hammerheart, but all done with an addicting zeal that’s entirely ZATYR’s alone. Open thy ears and allow Ornament of Proposition to recast its spells!

It was at the dawn of 2019 when a strange little demo inconspicuously announced itself from the other side and introduced the sound of the bloody iris. Titled Erste Beschwörung, it was the first public recording of one HEXENBRETT, the work of a mysterious duo revealing themselves as Josto Feratu and Scarlettina Bolétte. This was a literal bolt from the blue, sounds that were as refreshingly new as they were authentically old. “Cemetery sounds” is what the band called them, but that only told half the story. Wild and wily, HEXENBRETT unloaded a dizzying payload of sounds both traditional and unorthodox, dumping into its hot-rockin’ cauldron spices from first-wave black metal, Iron Curtain-era speed metal, outsider doom, and even old-school deathrock. It was a kaleidoscopic spin, and caught the attention of Caligari Records (who did a wider cassette release) and then DYING VICTIMS with their 12” vinyl version toward the end of the year. Lots of other, strange-starved ears picked up on it, too.

The stage thus set, HEXENBRETT proceeds to defy expectations and obliterate the slate with its debut album, Zweite Beschwörung: Ein Kind zu töten. A record of stark contrasts, Zweite Beschwörung immediately sounds definitively like HEXENBRETT: roaming ancient cemeteries with a torch in hand, conjuring the madness and mysticism of early black metal, when unorthodoxy was celebrated and no blueprints yet existed – only paths to be blazed! But, that latter element is precisely where Zweite Beschwörung takes a different turn, delving into waters both more refined and more rarefied, more straightforward and more obtuse – more METAL, epic and outlandish and “true,” but decidedly in an un-metal manner – beguiling the senses either way, and addictively so. It’s a turn that’s directly inspired by such sources as varied as Varathron, Jean Rollin, Danzig, Goblin, and Van Halen, and yet emerging completely unique and unlike little else around. A diverse journey through mouldy crypts and deranged minds, Zweite Beschwörung: Ein Kind zu töten features eight original tracks and an astonishing cover of Townes Van Zandt's "The Spider Song".

Quite commandingly, HEXENBRETT reveal an uncanny knack for songcraft, building defined and endearing hooks that unfold unexpectedly yet thrillingly, the intensity constantly rising and falling with preternatural ease but always in service of the song. Elsewhere, the band coats its creations with subtle layers of synth, further fanning that otherworldly atmosphere that laid in wait across the demo while ragged aggression usually took over. Which is all to say nothing of the absolutely spellbinding chimes often employed, evoking a banquet of horror with an almost-filmic quality in line with the band’s love for European cult cinema. And, fittingly, the production across Zweite Beschwörung is richly analog, scrappy but shimmering, evincing a totality of design and just-professional-enough presentation without sacrificing the entity’s original ethics. Like most first albums should be, the tale of HEXENBRETT truly begins here.

If there was ever any question about HEXENBRETT’s singular nature, just beginning to bloom, simply gaze upon the cover art to Zweite Beschwörung: Ein Kind zu töten. All other paths blazed, this is the only one left, and it’s HEXENBRETT’s alone… The dead will dance, expect the unexpected!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present TØRONTO’s striking debut mini-album, Under Siege, on 12” vinyl and digital formats.
Hailing from Sweden, TØRONTO formed in 2017, partly out of the ashes of the sorely missed Morbus Chron – vocalist/guitarist Edvin Aftonfalk and bassist Dag Landin, here under the stage names Eddie Flawless and 79-83, respectively – and also powerhouse drummer Leo Ekström Sollenmo, from the well-respected Lethal Steel and Temisto, under the name Lt. Oxtreme as well as one Seb Cyborg on guitars. With this lineup in place, the quartet released their debut demo in 2018 and then the Nocturnal High tape on DYING VICTIMS later that year. That latter title alone suggested that something strange ‘n’ salacious was indeed afoot…
And it is! Wanna get nocturnal higher? Then become Under Siege! Encompassing the strides they made across their two demos, TØRONTO’s first longer-playing record is a rush of weird ‘n’ wild speed metal heavily informed by hardcore punk. Put simply, one could imagine the sound of Under Siege as greased-up NWOBHM colliding headlong into early Razor and Warfare, but overseen by Inepsy, mid ‘80s Discharge, and even Howard Benson-era Motörhead. Shit shreds, fast and free, each raucous-yet-rockin’ section charging into the night but equally exuding an unselfconsciously subtle minimalism that somehow gets these eight bangers over and done with in an average of barely two minutes each. Put another way, one could also imagine the zombified spirit of Morbus Chron holding court here, in the sense that that band both embodied and defied death metal; TØRONTO similarly does such with speed metal, but again renders it into an alternately ideal/oblique form that’s entirely theirs – and this is just the start.
While maybe not as off-the-wall weird as GISM’s NWOBHM/noise mélange M.A.N., TØRONTO are treading comparably rarified ground with Under Siege, and their trajectory into the strange is assured. Get with their program or get out of the way!

Dying Victims Productions is proud to collaborate with the mighty and long running grunts of AT WAR. Together we celebrate their two first records of old school thrash metal with two killer designs by Dark Dungeons Atelier.

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present the first two demos of MIDAS on vinyl LP format under the title Demo Tapes.

Hailing from the mean streets of Detroit, MIDAS are a four-piece band of hard rock warriors. Theirs is an ancient, time-lost sound, recalling rock ‘n’ roll’s first transitions into proto-metal during the hazy, crazy ‘70s. But, MIDAS are not simply retro-retread plagiarists looking to (hazily, lazily) replicate the past; this era and style of music BURNS within them, and it bursts forth with effervescence and excitement across their two demos to date.

Both released during 2019, MIDAS’ Solid Gold Heavy Metal and Still Hungry each feature four effervescent, exciting songs, and both trounce most bands regular recordings. Brimming with a startling, stultifying confidence, Solid Gold Heavy Metal (which occupies Side A of this DYING VICTIMS vinyl edition) patiently builds eldritch grooves guided by narrative lead work. There’s a subtle yet no-less-dazzling mysticism here recalling earliest Scorpions, Judas Priest, and even trio-era Thin Lizzy – just witness the demo’s eerily breathtaking closer, “Blackened Blade” – as well as subsequent legends Manilla Road and Cirith Ungol. The heavier stylings of the latter begin to come to the fore on Still Hungry, here occupying Side B. Now fully into late ‘70s heavy metal mode, MIDAS move beyond the moodiness of their first demo to more epic and fantastical landscapes, kicking up the octane and cruising into the night with the ever-aptly titled “Street Knights.” Together, both demos could verily hold together as an exceptionally tight ‘n’ thematic album-length work.

DYING VICTIMS couldn’t be more excited to unleash the majesty ‘n’ mysticism of America’s MIDAS to a worldwide audience. Take a trip back in time – and into the future – with Demo Tapes!

Like a brightly burning star, CRYPT DAGGER burst into the night at the dawn of 2019. A two-song rehearsal introduced their boisterous, belligerent ways before the four-song Tales of Torment EP followed. Here, the full rapacious nature of CRYPT DAGGER revealed itself with rudeness and crudeness: filth-banging, black-as-pitch SPEED METAL with a heavy debt to punk, as well as such surprising influences as Devo, The Mummies, and early B-52s. And it was only the start!

Now, under the guiding gaze of DYING VICTIMS, CRYPT DAGGER shall spring from the gutter and into heavy metal vomit parties worldwide with From Below! Comprising eight songs in a swift ‘n’ satisfying 24 minutes, this special MLP comprises the four tracks of Tales of Torment with three more brand-new ones as well as an all-too-fitting cult cover of Dead Moon. Names vividly invoked include Carnivore, Razor, Hallows Eve, Nasty Savage, Living Death, and of course earliest Bathory and Venom, but all done with Road Warrior sense of style: maximum overdrive, total penetration! And again, this is only the start…

Go way, way down with CRYPT DAGGER’s From Below – only for the creepiest of creeps!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present DEATH RACER’s debut demo “Qualifying” on music cassette.

Three maniacs from Austria were brought together by their evil appreciation of burning rubber on hot asphalt. Bruce Pirelli, Frankenstein and Johnny Brise are all experienced musicians in bands such as Kringa, Hagzissa, Eisenhand or Chainbreaker, yet decided they needed to hail SPEED METAL enhanced with nods to rough heavy metal and gnarly punk attitude. Care for some insane shrieks close to Deathhammer, then put on your helmet and get into your racer. After all, what is more insane than speeding with 300 km/h and crashing straight into a concrete wall?

All Tapes with Sticker and Button

Release date: 24th April

DVP 140 Hexenbrett - Erste Beschwörung MCD edition + MLP Repress

HEXENBRETT is an entity that provides cemetery sounds exclusively. The first invocation, fittingly entitled Erste Beschwörung, is a sample of what will follow in the future. Roaming ancient dungeons with sword in one hand and torch in the other, HEXENBRETT conjures the madness and mysticism of olde-worlde black metal, when unorthodoxy was celebrated and no blueprints yet existed - only paths to be blazed! Indeed does HEXENBRETT blaze across this four-song/19-minute offering, remaining firmly rooted in the purest metals but fanning those flames with a creepy, coffin-dwelling atmosphere that puts Erste Beschwörung in a league all its own, also incorporating eldritch doom and deathrock into this wildly bubbling cauldron. And it's early days still...

No boundaries, no limitations: HEXENBRETT digs its own unique grave with Erste Beschwörung, and the cemetery is wide-fucking-open. The spell was cast, the demons are here - let the haunting begin!

Although THE NIGHT ETERNAL's first public recording, already, these Germans are evincing the mastery of veterans. Across their three original compositions and a reverentially poignant cover of Judas Priest's "(Take These) Chains," the quintet concoct a supremely powerful and stirringly moody sort of heavy metal, both traditionally pure-steel in their dynamics yet also brimming with epicness and a sort of forlorn heroism. In fact, early '80s Judas Priest is an apt reference for The Night Eternal's night-prowling style, all gleaming chrome and classy, but bespeaking an ever-present darkness beneath that alluring exterior. Of course, hooks are massive as are the commanding vocals of frontman Ricardo, who's already on his way to being a first class heavy metal singer in his own right, but it's the chemistry among the five members of THE NIGHT ETERNAL that puts this beyond most other debut recordings: truly, their fire and fluidity are magick to behold! Appropriately moody cover art courtesy of Brouemaster Visual Decay.

Forming in 2018, KARLOFF hail from Germany, helmed by erstwhile Graveyard Ghoul member Tom Horrified alongside a couple close comrades. But compared to that band’s old-school death metal stylings, KARLOFF go in a more punk-oriented direction – more street than cavern, as it were – with a sound self-described as “raw obscure punk turns into blackness.”

KARLOFF did exactly that with their debut Demo ’18, three thirsty ‘n’ miserable tracks of street-walking napalm. But things got more twisted ‘n’ pissed with the following Raw Nights a year later. Like a more gutter-level Midnight, here did KARLOFF kick out the (creepy) jams, strutting with sleazy confidence and an infectious sense of bash/crash/slash that struck deep into the heart of what makes the best of both punk and metal. Of course, that blackened singe is never far away, and gives KARLOFF’s canon that ever-special twist of ancient evil.

Fans from the very beginning, now does DYING VICTIMS combine both recordings onto one longer-playing format, under the title Raw Nights. Raw is this night in-fucking-deed, and you get eight quick-hitting tracks in a tantalizing 20 minutes, graced with new cover art courtesy of Tom Horrified and Jan Utecht of Occvlta. Go hard, go fast, go free: KARLOFF compel you to partake generously in Raw Nights!
– Regular edition on black vinyl, with insert, poster, sticker, post card and download code.
– Special edition on colored vinyl, with insert, poster, sticker, post card, download code and patch.
DVP 147 Warlust – Unearthing Shattered Philosophies LP/CD

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present the highly anticipated second album of Germany’s WARLUST, Unearthing Shattered Philosophies, on CD, vinyl LP and digital formats.

One of the metal underground’s best-kept secrets, WARLUST began their assault on the false in 2012. The title of their debut demo, 2014’s Unholy Attack, said everything it needed to: here was blackthrashing METAL, steeped in the spirits of old and with genuinely evil blood coursing through its veins. However, it was 2017’s Morbid Execution debut album where WARLUST first truly took flight – on burning wings of flame! More intense, more epic, more heavy fucking metal, Morbid Execution carried on the noble work started by founding fathers Desaster in their homeland and Deströyer 666, Zemial, and Aura Noir abroad.

But, while that debut LP was still tethered to more traditional-style blackthrash, with Unearthing Shattered Philosophies do WARLUST’s songwriting chops blossom with startling strength and crushing clarity. It’s all immediately WARLUST, for sure, but within the album’s eight-song/45-minute runtime lurks a travelogue of terror and triumph, of melancholy and malevolence. Calling it more “epic” would be accurate, but that only tells half the story, if at all; allowing oneself to be swept away by both teeth-gnashing thrash sprints and strident, swords-aloft marches is more representative of the experience, of total possession, in thrall to the eternal and unyielding spirit of Hell’s heavy metal. Likewise, WARLUST’s command of dynamics here is impressive, to say the very least: part and parcel of those more epic stylings, the narrative flow within each track and then from one track to the next takes the band into the upper echelon of nowadays evil metal. And the band’s melodicism is, as ever, simultaneously cryogenic and burning hot to the touch in the grand tradition of classic Dissection and Necrophobic.

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present the striking debut album of Canada’s SANDSTORM, Time to Strike, on 12” vinyl and CD formats.

Hailing from Vancouver, SANDSTORM are a power-trio in the grand tradition: PJ “The Butcher” La Griffe on drums, Reptile Anderson on lead vocals & bass guitar, and Stevie “Broke” Whiteless on lead vocals & guitar. The band formed during the winter 2017 and were initially inspired by ‘80s Swedish underground metal, the original NWOBHM movement, and “Rob Halford’s Instagram account.” While knowing (and fully embracing) all of heavy metal’s over-the-top aesthetics at the dawn of the 1980s, it became immediately apparent that SANDSTORM were indeed the Real fucking Deal when faced with their debut album, Time to Strike.

In early 2019, SANDSTORM digitally released Time to Strike and did a self-released run of 100 CDs and tapes, all of which sold out quickly, and for good reason: here was glorious (and gloriously scrappy) pre-speed/thrash HEAVY METAL in the literally ancient, sword-wielding style so favored in the early ‘80s, rendered in such authentic (and authentically over-the-top) style, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this was some unearthed relic from the era. Nothing’s overdriven here, and everything moves at a patient yet hot-rocking pace; all strings suitably retain a strong sense of rock ‘n’ roll, pared back in distortion to allow the medieval melodicism to work its magick. And, like all the best early true metal, the vocals are clear and authoritative and just high-pitched enough to evoke that misty ‘n’ mystical sensation. And although Time to Strike comprises but six songs, each one’s a mini-epic in its own right, making the album a compact but somehow expansive 35 minutes.

Many references could be made to Time to Strike, but no specific one in particular – that’s just how infectious and charismatic SANDSTORM are. And this is only the beginning, with more new material due later this year on DYING VICTIMS. Additionally, SANDSTORM will play Sweden’s esteemed Muskelrock fest this year, which perfectly suits the band’s obscure ‘n’ old-school take on heavy metal. Fuck yeah, it’s Time to Strike!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present COLTRE’s striking debut, Under the Influence, on CD and 12” vinyl formats.

COLTRE was forged in London, England by guitarists Daniel Sweed and Marco Stamigna in May 2019. They met at a Midnight concert and decided to form a band inspired by the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. They started rehearsing, and by the beginning of 2020 had recorded the four-song EP Under the Influence, to be released in time for their first gig, supporting Witchtower at Boston Music Rooms.

The band self-released Under the Influence on CD and digital formats, but now DYING VICTIMS steps forward to champion COLTRE’s cause and release it as a five-song work, featuring an exclusive new track. Rough and rustic but brimming with an authentically ancient fire, Under the Influence is moody metallic majesty: dark ‘n’ mysterious riffs, portentously galloping rhythms, epic-yet-direct compositions, and the sage-like pipes of Stagmina atop it all. One could be mistaken for thinking COLTRE were some unearthed relic from the original NWOBHM movement, so hot-rockin’ is their swords-aloft surge, evoking high fantasy and urban grit in equal measure, and crucially retaining that pivotal rock ‘n’ roll thrust Thin Lizzy largely gifted to that movement.

But COLTRE are their own men, and as reverential as they are of these enduring paradigms, Under the Influence is undoubtedly its own creation, its own wild world. You are hereby compelled to go under THEIR influence!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present the highly anticipated fourth album of Austria’s DEATHSTORM, For Dread Shall Reign, on CD and vinyl LP formats.

A veritable institution by now, DEATHSTORM have been flying the flag of hate for a decade now, releasing albums on such well-regarded labels as I Hate and High Roller. DEATHSTORM delivered a swift ‘n’ sweet EP for DYING VICTIMS titled The Gallows in 2015, and now the power-trio return to the label for their most intense and varied recording yet, For Dread Shall Reign.

Without doubt, the spectre of classic Kreator looms large over DEATHSTORM still – and why should it not, when you’re doing deathtrash this devastating? – but with For Dread Shall Reign, the band bring forth a whole host of equally classic contours. From very old Metallica to equally old Slayer on to ‘80s Death and especially Demolition Hammer, DEATHSTORM here hammer out riffs, riffs, RIFFS! But, unlike so much thrash that haphazardly seeks to simply catalog riffs in disservice of the song, these Austrian veterans thread their enviable arsenal into hard-charging, headbanging juggernauts of immediately memorable metal-mania manna. There’s nothing fancy here, no concessions toward “maturity” or “crossover” or other euphemisms for watering-down their already-heady brew; for DEATHSTORM, heavy metal is the law, and For Dread Shall Reign honors this noble ideal pairing strong songwriting with a tight ‘n’ brutal production favorably reminiscent of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. Because DEATHSTORM aren’t broken – so don’ fix ‘em!

Social criticism, serial killers, cults, anti-religion, war…all this is grist for DEATHSTORM’s lyrical mill. What they spit out is supreme DEATH-fucking-THRASH of the highest order, because in these troubled times, For Dread Shall Reign!

By now a fixture on the true metal scene, Portugal’s MIDNIGHT PRIEST have been keeping it true for a dozen years now. With CD releases on such esteemed labels as Stormspell, Metal on Metal, and Slaney, this exceptionally monikered quintet – drummer War Tank, guitarists Iron Fist and Steel Bringer, vocalist Lex Thunder, and bassist Joe Dalton – consistently burn with a proud ‘n’ powerful sound that’s 1000% iron-clad HEAVY METAL.

Of their full-length releases, arguably, it is 2019’s Aggressive Hauntings which is their proudest and most powerful statement yet. No great changes made here – cruising-yet-crunchy metal between mid-tempo and speed, tracing a trajectory from classic Lizzy Borden to ‘80s King Diamond to Painkiller-era Judas Priest – but it’s the swagger and confidence MIDNIGHT PRIEST display across this third album that make it absolutely addicting. These are all ANTHEMS, brimming with bravado and drama and total ‘n’ utter POWER, each one draped in darkness but equally sheathed in steel most glimmering. It’s not titled Aggressive Hauntings for nothing!

Dedicated to the memory of metal legends Lemmy, Mark Shelton, and Terry Jones, MIDNIGHT PRIEST’s Aggressive Hauntings is at last unleashed on the most perfect format for classic metal: VINYL!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present a special split album between Austria’s VENATOR and Germany’s ANGEL BLADE on vinyl LP format.

Combining debut demos/EPs by both bands, this split album brings together two exciting new talents in traditional metal on the format so fitting for such: VINYL! On one side is VENATOR’s Paradiser EP. Featuring killer, era-authentic artwork reminiscent of Mausoleum Records’ mid-‘80s heyday, VENATOR’s entry here is three moody ‘n’ melodic tracks which have a subtly anthemic quality; just as equally, one can feel the chill of night blow across Paradiser. The uniquely retro-futuristic production simply accentuates the atmospheric push and pull – and already, VENATOR are hard at work on their debut album for DYING VICTIMS. (The label will also release Paradiser as a standalone CD and cassette.)

On the other side is ANGEL BLADE’s self-titled debut demo, which was originally released on cassette but has created high demand for other formats since. And it’s not difficult to discover why, as Angel Blade literally sounds like a lost demo from 1981: so authentic is ANGEL BLADE’s study of ancient NWOBHM and Scandinavian metal, you’ll be checking the calendar as each of these three shimmering, steel-clad tracks takes a hold.

Together, you’ll be in thrall to VENATOR and ANGEL BLADE’s classic metal mesmerism!

Hailing from Sweden and forming in 2019, ZATYR quickly set to work on their debut EP – plus, speaking of “set,” their vocalist Set used to be in the beloved Devil Lee Rot. Titled Ornament of Proposition, the band’s first public recording was released digitally in September of that year, and proudly displayed an otherwise-new band brimming with the fire of the ancients and confidence to spare. Indeed, ZATYR here sounded authentically old, casting their gaze across the darkest and classiest currents of classic heavy metal singed with a touch of first-wave black metal. But, paradoxically, the quartet just as ably burned with the enthusiasm of feral youngbloods, imbuing the EP’s three tracks with boundless passion.

Seeing fit to foster the rich lifeblood of the heavy metal underground, DYING VICTIMS grants ZATYR’s debut EP on a new lease on life, rendering it onto black gold and including an exclusive bonus track, now encompassing a total of 18 stout minutes. Truly, this re-release shall rightfully expose ZATYR to the wider metal landscape, boldly emblazoning “The Devil’s Rock ‘n’ Roll” across the hearts and minds of those who hail ancient heavy metal and black metal alike. Names to be referenced include early Running Wild, Mercyful Fate, Omen, Brocas Helm, Death SS and even Bathory’s transition from Blood Fire Death to Hammerheart, but all done with an addicting zeal that’s entirely ZATYR’s alone. Open thy ears and allow Ornament of Proposition to recast its spells!

It was at the dawn of 2019 when a strange little demo inconspicuously announced itself from the other side and introduced the sound of the bloody iris. Titled Erste Beschwörung, it was the first public recording of one HEXENBRETT, the work of a mysterious duo revealing themselves as Josto Feratu and Scarlettina Bolétte. This was a literal bolt from the blue, sounds that were as refreshingly new as they were authentically old. “Cemetery sounds” is what the band called them, but that only told half the story. Wild and wily, HEXENBRETT unloaded a dizzying payload of sounds both traditional and unorthodox, dumping into its hot-rockin’ cauldron spices from first-wave black metal, Iron Curtain-era speed metal, outsider doom, and even old-school deathrock. It was a kaleidoscopic spin, and caught the attention of Caligari Records (who did a wider cassette release) and then DYING VICTIMS with their 12” vinyl version toward the end of the year. Lots of other, strange-starved ears picked up on it, too.

The stage thus set, HEXENBRETT proceeds to defy expectations and obliterate the slate with its debut album, Zweite Beschwörung: Ein Kind zu töten. A record of stark contrasts, Zweite Beschwörung immediately sounds definitively like HEXENBRETT: roaming ancient cemeteries with a torch in hand, conjuring the madness and mysticism of early black metal, when unorthodoxy was celebrated and no blueprints yet existed – only paths to be blazed! But, that latter element is precisely where Zweite Beschwörung takes a different turn, delving into waters both more refined and more rarefied, more straightforward and more obtuse – more METAL, epic and outlandish and “true,” but decidedly in an un-metal manner – beguiling the senses either way, and addictively so. It’s a turn that’s directly inspired by such sources as varied as Varathron, Jean Rollin, Danzig, Goblin, and Van Halen, and yet emerging completely unique and unlike little else around. A diverse journey through mouldy crypts and deranged minds, Zweite Beschwörung: Ein Kind zu töten features eight original tracks and an astonishing cover of Townes Van Zandt’s “The Spider Song”.

Quite commandingly, HEXENBRETT reveal an uncanny knack for songcraft, building defined and endearing hooks that unfold unexpectedly yet thrillingly, the intensity constantly rising and falling with preternatural ease but always in service of the song. Elsewhere, the band coats its creations with subtle layers of synth, further fanning that otherworldly atmosphere that laid in wait across the demo while ragged aggression usually took over. Which is all to say nothing of the absolutely spellbinding chimes often employed, evoking a banquet of horror with an almost-filmic quality in line with the band’s love for European cult cinema. And, fittingly, the production across Zweite Beschwörung is richly analog, scrappy but shimmering, evincing a totality of design and just-professional-enough presentation without sacrificing the entity’s original ethics. Like most first albums should be, the tale of HEXENBRETT truly begins here.

If there was ever any question about HEXENBRETT’s singular nature, just beginning to bloom, simply gaze upon the cover art to Zweite Beschwörung: Ein Kind zu töten. All other paths blazed, this is the only one left, and it’s HEXENBRETT’s alone… The dead will dance, expect the unexpected!

Hailing from Sweden, TØRONTO formed in 2017, partly out of the ashes of the sorely missed Morbus Chron – vocalist/guitarist Edvin Aftonfalk and bassist Dag Landin, here under the stage names Eddie Flawless and 79-83, respectively – and also powerhouse drummer Leo Ekström Sollenmo, from the well-respected Lethal Steel and Temisto, under the name Lt. Oxtreme as well as one Seb Cyborg on guitars. With this lineup in place, the quartet released their debut demo in 2018 and then the Nocturnal High tape on DYING VICTIMS later that year. That latter title alone suggested that something strange ‘n’ salacious was indeed afoot…

And it is! Wanna get nocturnal higher? Then become Under Siege! Encompassing the strides they made across their two demos, TØRONTO’s first longer-playing record is a rush of weird ‘n’ wild speed metal heavily informed by hardcore punk. Put simply, one could imagine the sound of Under Siege as greased-up NWOBHM colliding headlong into early Razor and Warfare, but overseen by Inepsy, mid ‘80s Discharge, and even Howard Benson-era Motörhead. Shit shreds, fast and free, each raucous-yet-rockin’ section charging into the night but equally exuding an unselfconsciously subtle minimalism that somehow gets these eight bangers over and done with in an average of barely two minutes each. Put another way, one could also imagine the zombified spirit of Morbus Chron holding court here, in the sense that that band both embodied and defied death metal; TØRONTO similarly does such with speed metal, but again renders it into an alternately ideal/oblique form that’s entirely theirs – and this is just the start.

While maybe not as off-the-wall weird as GISM’s NWOBHM/noise mélange M.A.N., TØRONTO are treading comparably rarified ground with Under Siege, and their trajectory into the strange is assured. Get with their program or get out of the way!

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present VENATOR’s debut ep Paradiser on CD and cassette format.
Austria has one more exciting new talent in traditional metal, VENATOR! Paradiser features killer, era-authentic artwork reminiscent of Mausoleum Records’ mid-‘80s heyday and is VENATOR’s entry with three moody ‘n’ melodic tracks which have a subtly anthemic quality; just as equally, one can feel the chill of night blow across Paradiser. The uniquely retro-futuristic production simply accentuates the atmospheric push and pull – and already, VENATOR are hard at work on their debut album for DYING VICTIMS.

- CD edition with sticker
- MC edition with sticker and button

DVP 127 The Night Eternal – The Night Eternal MLP Repress

Although THE NIGHT ETERNAL’s first public recording, already, these Germans are evincing the mastery of veterans. Across their three original compositions and a reverentially poignant cover of Judas Priest’s “(Take These) Chains,” the quintet concoct a supremely powerful and stirringly moody sort of heavy metal, both traditionally pure-steel in their dynamics yet also brimming with epicness and a sort of forlorn heroism. In fact, early ’80s Judas Priest is an apt reference for The Night Eternal‘s night-prowling style, all gleaming chrome and classy, but bespeaking an ever-present darkness beneath that alluring exterior. Of course, hooks are massive as are the commanding vocals of frontman Ricardo, who’s already on his way to being a first class heavy metal singer in his own right, but it’s the chemistry among the five members of THE NIGHT ETERNAL that puts this beyond most other debut recordings: truly, their fire and fluidity are magick to behold! Appropriately moody cover art courtesy of Brouemaster Visual Decay.

HEXENBRETT is an entity that provides cemetery sounds exclusively. The first invocation, fittingly entitled Erste Beschwörung, is a sample of what will follow in the future. Roaming ancient dungeons with sword in one hand and torch in the other, HEXENBRETT conjures the madness and mysticism of olde-worlde black metal, when unorthodoxy was celebrated and no blueprints yet existed – only paths to be blazed! Indeed does HEXENBRETT blaze across this four-song/19-minute offering, remaining firmly rooted in the purest metals but fanning those flames with a creepy, coffin-dwelling atmosphere that puts Erste Beschwörung in a league all its own, also incorporating eldritch doom and deathrock into this wildly bubbling cauldron. And it’s early days still…

No boundaries, no limitations: HEXENBRETT digs its own unique grave with Erste Beschwörung, and the cemetery is wide-fucking-open. The spell was cast, the demons are here – let the haunting begin!